Folk music might not top a child’s playlist, so the organizers of the Central Ohio Folk Festival
have another selling point.

“They don’t have to sit still and be quiet (during a performance),” said Sharon Mittenbergs, who
with her husband, Art, coordinates the festival. “They can get up and move around.”

Making music fun is critical, added Joanie Calem, who coordinated the children’s events.

“Say you’re singing
The Paw Paw Patch, which is a basic folk tune that used to have all these square-dance
steps to it,” said Calem, who makes a living teaching and performing folk music for children. “
Instead of those dance steps, you can say, ‘Everybody move like an elephant,’ or ‘a tiger.’

“Suddenly, you have instant participation and an instant thrill.”

Informality is a key component to the 18th annual event, which will take place Friday through
Sunday at Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park. For example, the festival will get underway on Friday
with a potluck dinner and a “Worst Song in the World” contest.

About six years ago, Art Mittenbergs said, organizers decided to add a children’s component. The
idea was to attract younger families and ensure that future generations would appreciate the
genre.

“We realized the youngest member of the organizing group was in their mid-50s,” he said.

At first, children’s activities took place only on Sundays. A few years ago, that expanded to
Saturdays and Sundays.

The main attractions for youngsters include an arts-and-crafts area, where percussion
instruments may be created, and a musical “petting zoo” to help children become more familiar with
folk instruments such as a banjo or dulcimer.

This year, Calem said, a “jam session” will feature young musicians playing their newly crafted
instruments.

Also new to the festival this year is stage time set aside to showcase younger performers.

Suzuki violinists and past recipients of the Bob Kirby Scholarship will perform from 12:30 to
3:30 p.m. Sunday.

The scholarship began in 2010 and is awarded in honor of a former member of the Columbus Folk
Music Society who “loved music and loved kids,” Art Mittenbergs said.

The scholarship goes toward the purchase of an instrument or lessons for a child interested in
music, Sharon Mittenbergs said.

“So often now, schools don’t have music classes,” she said. “If you’re going to learn music, you
have to learn young.”